Bitcoin, Ethereum Drop After Powell Speech
Bitcoin and Ethereum fall after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said in a speech that the Fed is not considering Bitcoin and cannot acquire it.
The Federal Reserve cut the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 4.25%–4.5% yesterday. Chairman Powell said after the rate cut, saying, “The U.S. economy is growing at a healthy 2.5% pace, unemployment is low, but inflation expectations are higher, and there is uncertainty.”
Fed Chair Powell Avoids Talk of Bitcoin Reserves:
Asked about Bitcoin reserves, Powell said: “We can’t own Bitcoin. We don’t want much change. Congress should look at that.”
Following Powell’s speech, Bitcoin fell below $100,000, down 5% in 24 hours, while several altcoins fell more than 10%. In 24 hours, $709 million was liquidated, including $612 million in long orders.
Bitcoin and Ethereum fell after Powell’s speech. Bitcoin fell 4.23% to $100,671 after hitting an all-time high of $108,239 on December 17. Bitcoin’s 24-hour trading volume increased 42% to $99.52 billion, while its market cap declined 3.87% to $1.99 trillion.
Ethereum has also been experiencing turbulence. After falling 5.10% yesterday, Ethereum is currently at $3,659. Its market cap has fallen 5.22% to $440.81 billion. Ethereum’s 24-hour trading volume has increased 49.27% to $52.45 billion.
Several cryptocurrencies fell more than 10% after Powell’s aggressive remarks. In 24 hours, $709 million was liquidated, including $612 million in long orders.
Powell also said that while the labor market is cooling, the Fed does not believe additional cooling is needed to reduce inflation. He stressed that labor market conditions are robust, though less tight than in 2019, and that unemployment has increased but remains low.